Oak Island OKs moratorium banning 'mega' homes

Thursday

Feb 20, 2014 at 10:46 AM

Oak Island Town Council unanimously placed a moratorium banning any new homes larger than six bedrooms

By Jason GonzalesJason.Gonzales@starnewsonline.com

The Oak Island Town Council unanimously placed a 90-day moratorium Thursday any new homes larger than six bedrooms after hearing from residents asking for stricter rules on large-size houses.The moratorium is designed to give the town time to work out rules and regulations for "mega-homes" on the island. The council hopes to develop and adopt the new regulations by mid-April.The council will have a number of workshops with the town planning board on the matter. Concerns such as safety, parking and quality-of-life issues will be addressed."Just to be clear, we don't plan on talking about any actions we take until we have the workshops," Mayor Betty Wallace said during the meeting. About 100 residents attended, most in favor of the moratorium. And more than 20 people submitted written comments asking the council for regulations limiting large houses."We have always been low rise and low density," said Jennifer Ray, a resident who spoke in favor of the moratorium. "We need to keep our haven."The issue was sparked when Rakesh Kumar, a landowner, sought to build a 15-bedroom, 12-bath house near 6400 West Beach Drive. The size of the house, which is being advertised as the largest house on Oak Island, worried residents and Oak Island officials.Although the structure won't be affected by the moratorium, construction of the 15-bedroom house is on hold because of a neighbor's appeal to the town's board of adjustments."The town needs to impose regulations not only on buildings over six bedrooms, but any homes with the primary purpose of being a vacation rental," said Eric Remington, a New Bern-based attorney representing Brett Halna Du Fretay. Fretay's property is next to the 15-bedroom house site.Remington said some towns regulate licenses for rentals that track safety and ordinance compliance."This would allow the town to suspend or revoke licenses," he said, "or impose fines for violations."The super-size vacation rentals have become more common at some Brunswick County beaches in recent years since sewer systems have replaced individual septic tanks that previously limited house sizes. A year ago, a 16-bedroom house went up in Holden Beach.Since Oak Island's sewer system was completed, there are only two major limiting factors – mandated setbacks and height limits.People in the real estate business said they are worried about strict regulations.Kumar said renters don't want to ruin the family feel of the beach town."Please look at this rationally," he said. "There is very little correlation between the size of a house and the quality of people that rent there."And Vince DeFreitas, who is building the 15-bedroom house, said bigger houses bring more tourists – the lifeblood of Oak Island's economy."It is the engine that drives the town," he said. "We need to be careful not to stymie that."